NOTACON, an annual conference held in Cleveland, Ohio, explores and showcases technologies, philosophy and creativity often overlooked at other "hacker cons". Our desire is not to supplant other events, but complement them and strike a balance that has gone unnoticed in our community for far too long.

With each new year we build upon the successes and knowledge of the previous years. Our goal is to enlighten, educate, and entertain attendees, presenters, and staff alike. We try to do this by finding new ways to apply technology to graphics, art, music, or social interaction. Our first year explored issues involving art and technology. Last year we scratched the surface of ways in which community is influenced (both positively and negatively) by technology. This year we will explore ways in which communication can affect technology and vice versa. Many presentations, games and other events will revolve (sometimes quite creatively) around this theme.

Notacon espouses an ethos of exploration, participation and positive contributions. Hence, while some of the material we may cover is controversial or potentially "black hat" in nature, we feel it is important to bring light to all topics so that everyone can learn from the experience and create something good, fun or interesting from it.